■ adjective
1》 lacking physical strength and energy.
2》 liable to break or give way under pressure.
↘not convincing or forceful.
↘not secure, stable, or firmly established.
↘(of prices or a market) having a downward tendency.
3》 lacking power, influence, or ability.
↘lacking intensity.
↘(of a liquid or solution) heavily diluted.
↘(of features) not strongly marked.
↘(of a syllable) unstressed.
4》 Grammar denoting a class of verbs in Germanic languages that form the past tense and past participle by addition of a suffix (in English, typically -ed ).
Phrases
the ~er sex dated women regarded collectively.
~ at the knees helpless with emotion.
Derivatives
~ish adjective
Origin
OE wāc 'pliant, of little worth', 'not steadfast', reinforced in ME by ON veikr , from a Gmc base meaning 'yield, give way'.